Safety of decreasing ureteral stent duration following radical cystectomy

Purpose: We aim to assess the safety of decreasing ureteral stenting duration following Radical Cystectomy with Urinary Diversion (RCUD).

Materials and methods: We analyzed a prospectively and retrospectively collected dataset for cystectomy patients at our tertiary center. Adult patient who underwent RCUD for malignancy from January 2013 to February 2018 were included. Patients with a history of abdominal/pelvic radiation and continent diversions were excluded. The patient population was divided to late stent removal group (LSR-POD 14) and early stent removal group (ESR-POD5). Our endpoints were total stent duration, 90-day readmission, 90-day total-UTI, 90-day urinary-readmissions, complications and Ureteroenteric Stricture (UES) rates. Statistical methods included t test, Chi-squared test and multivariate logistic regression.

Results: One hundred and seventy-eight patients were included in the final analysis after inclusion/exclusion criteria were applied. The LSR (n = 74) and ESR (n = 104) groups were similar in preoperative characteristics except higher intracorporeal ileal conduit formation in ESR. The duration of stenting decreased significantly from approximately 15.5-5 days (P < 0.001). The LSR had higher 90-day overall readmission rates (OR = 2.57, 95% CI 1.19-5.53, P = 0.016) and total-UTIs (OR = 2.36, 95%CI 1.11-5.04, P = 0.026). With a median follow-up of 9.8 months, UES was similar between the two groups.

Conclusion: Shorter ureteral stent duration is a safe and non-inferior option following RCUD. It allows for stent removal prior to discharge and less outpatient visits. In addition, decreasing stent duration was linked decreased readmissions and total-UTIs without increased risk of UES. However, future studies are needed to establish causality and promote stent duration change.